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Catalan political prisoners Jordi Sànchez, Jordi Turull, Josep Rull and Joaquim Forn are returning to Lledoners prison on Christmas Eve after being admitted to Terrassa Hospital last Tuesday due to the dehydration resulting from the hunger strike that they maintained for close to three weeks.

Sànchez said on Twitter that he received "extraordinary attention" and returns to prison "greatly recovered". The four pro-independence political and civil leaders were scheduled to be taken back to jail on Monday afternoon.

Translation: Today we return to #Lledoners prison greatly recovered. We have received extraordinary attention in the penitentiary module at Terrassa Hospital. Thanks to the medical, nursing and service staff for the excellent treatment. # FreeTothom — Jordi Sànchez

On December 1st, Sànchez and Turull began their hunger strike, which continued for 20 days. Three days later, Rull and Forn they joined them, thus going for 17 days without food. All four ended their hunger strike last Thursday, and hours later they were admitted to hospital in the nearby city of Terrassa to return to normal diet under medical control.

Until last Thursday, Turull was the only one of the four who had been transferred to the infirmary within the central Catalonia penitentiary of Lledoners. The other three continued in their normal module of the prison until the last day of the hunger strike.

Sànchez, Turull, Rull and Forn decided to strike to make their voices heard about the judicial situation of all of the Catalan political prisoners. They were demanding a response from Spain's Constitutional Court on the prisoners' appeals against preventative imprisonment, which had gone unanswered for up to a year, thereby preventing them from taking their cases to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Since their strike began, the Court has begun to answer their appeals.

A total of nine Catalan political prisoners continue to be held in "pre-trial" prison, for periods of between nine and thirteen months so far, accused of rebellion and other charges related to the 2017 Catalan independence referendum. Their trial is expected to begin in a few weeks.